Google+ Running in Cork, Ireland

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Preview of the Cork BHAA 'Harvey Norman' 5 Mile Road Race - Wed 10th June (8pm)
The first race in Cork since the Cork City Marathon & Relay takes place next Wednesday, the 10th of June at 8pm in Glanmire, just East of the City. Just to clear up any confusion, this is the same as the Gransons race....same route, different sponsor. The event centre for the race is the GAA club house right alongside the main road in Glanmire.

Directions...
From Cork, just go to Glanmire village and continue on towards Riverstown. After the major crossroads with traffic lights, you'll see the GAA clubhouse with pitches on the right (shown as X in the map below). There is a limited amount of parking at the club house while you should be able to park between there and Grandons garage which is about 800 metres further on.
If you wish to get your bearings, check this link......http://pininthemap.com/df8f7258ca2d1cd45
Course...
The start is up the road near Grandons garage. From the start, you run slightly downhill and past the GAA club house where you signed on. Through the next traffic lights, past the 1 mile mark and then left. Now you are on to pretty quiet residental roads. There are a few small falls and climbs as you go, up a little hill to a road junction and then right. Past the 2 mile mark and under a bridge for the main Cork-Dublin road. From here, you go around the next loop. I know there is a bit of a hill there, you pass the 3 mile mark and you come back under the bridge again. Now from the bridge, you have a 1 mile run through a residental area as the road climbs and falls. Around 4.5 miles, you are back onto the main road again as you take a right. Watch for the stewards here as this can be a busy road and you need to cross it. Once on the left side, it's about 800 metres from here to the finish beyond the GAA grounds.
Overall, a 5 mile course with lots of little pulls and drags. Probably not the fastest of courses.

If you would like to have a look at the course in more detail, I have put it up on the MapMyRun website.

New Runners...
For anyone new to the running scene (maybe some of the Marathon Relay runners???), this race like other local races is open to everyone. You do not need to be registered or a member of a club. There should be in excess of 300 runners in this race, from the very fast to the not so fast. Don't worry, you'll almost certainly find someone near your own standard to run with. The entry fee for non-registered runners is €7.
2008 Event...
Just a quick reminder of last year...


I know..........the music is rubbish but it's the only video of the 2008 race that exists!

4 comments:

Terri said...

Yikes! I'm definitely a novice. The thought of racing five miles after finishing the marathon 9 days ago doesn't sound appealing. Think I'll stick to the pool and treadmill for a couple more weeks... : - )

Unknown said...

John, that soundtrack is classic stuff, the Lalo Shrifrin scored theme from Cool Hand Luke, story of a man who finds redemption even in adversity. Sums of the Glanmire 5 I think. My sibling risked life & limb, precariously balanced between a dodgy telegraph pole & a Garda, to get this footage. I admit I picked the music ! :O)

Unknown said...

John, that soundtrack is classic stuff, the Lalo Shrifrin scored theme from Cool Hand Luke, story of a man who finds redemption even in adversity. Sums of the Glanmire 5 I think. My sibling risked life & limb, precariously balanced between a dodgy telegraph pole & a Garda, to get this footage. I admit I picked the music ! :O)

John Desmond said...

Nice one Rick! To each their own ;o)

You'll have to get a few more race video clips. From the comments that I get, they seem to be very popular. There are loads of photos of races out there but hardly any videos.